All about Bedtime

A few weeks ago I was talking to a dear friend of mine from high school about our daughters and tips we may have for smoother bedtime routines/rituals. My friend Cosette and I have decided to do a collaboration post about our bedtime routines. We thought it would be a great idea to share what our routines consist of, especially since I co-sleep, and Cosette has her daughter sleeping independently in her crib, giving you best of both worlds! 

As any new mom/parent knows, bedtime could either be your worst enemy, or greatest "friend" depending on how each child is/or acts around that time. Establishing a bedtime routine early on is key to having a smooth transition from daily activities to bedtime. Now, establishing a bedtime routine is certainly no walk in the park... It takes time, consistency, patience, and repetition for it to really work to your advantage. As long as you are consistent with your time management/ daily schedule, you can begin to establish a great routine within no time! 

With that being said, here's a little bit about how our bedtime routine goes:

Now most of you may know, Honor co-sleeps in our bed, and has been ever since she was about 4-5 months. Initially, I was completely against it and didn't want her to become dependent on the security that comes with sleeping with mommy and daddy, but I had to cave in because of the amount of times she would wake up when sleeping on her own. So for the sake of all of our sanity, here came Honor, into our bed. In the beginning of our new sleeping arrangement, I was a bit worried about her safety in our bed, but after a few nights, that completely ceased and we were all sleeping peacefully. Now, after having Honor in our bed, I had only intended on keeping her there for about a month or so, until her teething pain stopped (which was the cause of her constantly waking up in her crib) I ended up becoming so in love with the idea of co-sleeping. I went from completely against it, to absolutely loving it! In fact, I can't sleep now unless she is in our bed (go figure). The sense of security I get from having her next to me makes any worries I have go away. 

Though we all get a better nights rest with co-sleeping, Honor has her moments of waking us up throughout the night due to her teeth now cutting through. But other than that, she is still a pretty good sleeper like she was in the beginning. On a "good" night, Honor will fall asleep by about 8:50/9 pm (as long as she's had enough playtime time between her afternoon nap and bath) and sleep till 6:45/7am - with one late night feeding at 4am. 

Here is a breakdown of our bedtime routine, which begins at 8pm:

8:00 PM - Get all bottles prepped for bedtime and the next morning with proper water measurements. Clean diaper, jammies, brush, and ointments laid out.

8:15 PM - Run bath or shower (sometimes Honor and I co-shower together) water. Then we hop in, and get squeaky clean.

8:20 PM - Sean will usually come in the bathroom to get Honor and get her dressed for bed while I finish up my shower.

8:30 PM - Comes and lays in our bed, and has a 7oz bottle which usually puts her right to sleep - granted, if she has had enough activity prior to tire her out. Now on days where she may still not be tired by bedtime, she usually wiggles around like a little worm, or plays with my hands until she has had enough activity, then will proceed to fall asleep with a paci – 20 min after being put down (sometimes, those are the toughest nights because she tends to force herself to stay awake – you can only imagine how nuts it drives me! Lol especially if there’s a ton of things I need to get done for the boutique).

As far as products go, here is what we use to help get her to relax and have her mind focused on bedtime:

   

I honestly swear by these bedtime products! The relaxing scent really does add a calming effect to her nighttime routine.

We only shampoo her hair every Sunday and Wednesday evenings.

We also use these hair products for her little curls. Even though her hair texture is fine like mine, it does dry out quicker if washed on a daily basis, since she is a mixed baby J. So we use these products morning and night to keep her hair frizz and dry free.

We use Aquaphor on her face to keep it from drying out, as well as diaper cream (we have two of them to keep it from cross contaminating. This keeps her face hydrated.

Here's what we use to style/brush her hair.

If you aren't co-sleeping, and want to read about Cosette and Victoria's independent crib sleeping, head on over to her Blog and read about her bedtime routine & what works for them!

In honor of this collaboration Cosette and I are doing, we have decided to put together a giveaway of some of our favorite bedtime products, & a $15 Shop credit to Honor’s Boutique!

Here's how to enter:

1. You must follow both Cosette and I on Instagram:

@ilovingvictoria

@honorsboutique

2. Repost this Giveaway Picture & hashtag:

#honorsandvictoriagiveaway

3. Tag 2 friends on each of our posts to increase your chances

4. You may enter as much as you like 

(Get creative using our giveaway picture, keeping all contents of it - this will make you stand out!)

5. For extra entries, Like Honor’s Boutique on Facebook and Follow us on Etsy

6. Giveaway ends on Wednesday 3/18/14 and 12pm PST. The winner will be chosen at random, and be contacted via Instagram for further required information so that details of the giveaway can be given.

I hope you all enjoy reading about our nighttime routines, and can maybe gain some inspiration to create your own! Feel free to comment below about your current routine, and any tips you may have for us or anyone else!